School Feeding And Gender Consultant Lazio

School Feeding And Gender Consultant
Roma
Lazio, Lazio

WFP celebrates and embraces diversity.

it is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and

**gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status, physical or mental disability.

**Job Title**:School Feeding and Gender Consultant

**Type of Contract**:Consultant

**Division: SBP - **School-based Programmes

**Duty Station (City, Country)**: HQ Rome, Italy (remote working)

**Duration**:11 months

**BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT**:

With over 60 years' experience in School Feeding, WFP has a trajectory of working with more than 100 countries to set up sustainable national school feeding programmes.

In the context of COVID-19 we are at the forefront of supporting governments in planning for the safe re-opening of schools and making sure that meals and health services reach the ones that need it the most.

Our school feeding programmes not only provide the basics of nutritional food but serve as a powerful incentive for children to return to school.

Today, millions of children living in poor and vulnerable communities don't have regular access to the nutritious food they need to stay healthy and thrive.

This affects their physical and mental development and can keep them from finishing school and building the strong future they deserve.

WFP advocates for the universal adoption of school feeding programmes as a safety net that helps increase children's access to education and learning opportunities and strengthens their health and nutrition status.

WFP focuses increasingly on helping countries to establish and maintain nationally owned programmes.

In countries still requiring WFP's operational support, it implements school feeding programmes with clear hand over strategies.

Helping girls stay in school, especially into adolescence, is an effective way of preventing early marriage and of delaying the first pregnancy, both of which can trap women into poverty, social exclusion, violence and chronic ill health.

A multitude of gender inequalities hinder the access of children, especially girls, to schools.

There is growing evidence that even in conflict settings, school feeding programmes can enhance enrolment and reduce inappropriate labour, especially for girls.

In some countries, WFP has successfully operationalized approaches with partners such UNICEF, UNFPA and UN Women to address some of these barriers through integrated platforms, which need to be supported and scaled up.

A gender-responsive approach is being taken to ensure girls are enrolled and stay in school.

All children are provided with nutritious, fortified school meals; and integrated school health packages, including education services on nutrition and health, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and gender-based violence (GBV).

In addition, adolescent girls receive additional targeted support to address their specific needs, priorities and barriers including the provision of micronutrients, conditional cash incentives, services and support related to SRH, and tailored support in school, including mentoring and coaching.

In 2019, WFP provided meals, nutritious snacks or take-home rations in the form of food or cash-based transfers to more than 17. 3 million children in 59 countries, of which 50% were girls.

**ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES**:

As a consultant in the School-Based Programmes team in WFP Headquarters, you will bring your experience in the humanitarian and development sector by working and contributing to a multidisciplinary team focusing on multisectoral approaches to reach programme quality in school feeding.

You will support the establishment of clear pathways to identify ways to support more efficiently gender transformative school feeding programing such as building evidence, work on programme guidance, encourage and foster stronger partnerships, deliver on results, etc.

Through your "hands on" and "make it happen" attitude and by sharing your own thoughts and ideas with the team, you will contribute significantly to advancing school feeding programmes worldwide and ensuring that every child has the opportunity to reach their full potential and thrive.

The consultancy will focus on ensuring effective gender mainstreaming across WFP's school feeding portfolio with a view to promoting actions that transform the social norms and structural barriers that perpetuate gender inequalities in accessing and benefiting from education services.

**SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES AND TASKS**:

The consultant will work under the overall guidance and coordination of the Head of Programme.

He/she will be expected to support the implementation of gender transformative school feeding through:

- Liaise and consult with external stakeholders with a proven experience in advancing gender equality, girls' education and wellbeing including but not limited to UNESCO, UNICEF, UNGEI, UNFPA, as well as relevant internal WFP units, to identify strategic